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TESTIMONY
Testimony by John Ketchum from the Manhattan Institute on nonpartisan primaries and even-year elections
0:45:39
·
5 min
John Ketchum argues that despite ranked-choice voting, NYC's electoral dynamics show low turnout and limited competition, with primaries often deciding outcomes.
He recommends considering nonpartisan primaries open to all voters, suggesting party leaders endorse candidates for ballot identification rather than relying solely on potentially misleading self-chosen labels.
Ketchum strongly advocates moving local elections to even-numbered years, citing evidence of significantly higher turnout, reduced special interest influence, and cost savings, while acknowledging the need for a state constitutional amendment.
- Low turnout (23% in 2021 mayoral general) and closed primaries (barring ~1M voters) limit competition.
- Recommends nonpartisan primaries open to all voters, potentially with party endorsements indicated on the ballot.
- Proposes list-based proportional representation for City Council as an alternative.
- Argues moving local elections to even years is the most effective way to boost turnout, potentially doubling participation.
- Even-year elections dilute special interest influence, save money, and studies show no discernible partisan impact.
- Acknowledges Article 13, Section 8 of the NYS Constitution as a barrier requiring amendment.
John Ketchum
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Burry and distinguished members of the twenty twenty five Charter Revision Commission, thank you for the opportunity to testify and for performing this important civic service for our city.
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I'm John Ketchum, legal policy fellow and director of cities at the Manhattan Institute.
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My views today are my own.
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I also second the recommendations made by my colleague, Eric Kober, at the February 24 hearing.
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Six years after adopting ranked choice voting for local primary and special elections and many of the city's electoral dynamics remain largely unchanged.
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Only 23% of registered voters participated in the twenty twenty one general election for mayor.
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Closed primaries still bar about a million unaffiliated voters from having a say in any primary.
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And and Manhattan Institute polling conducting this January has found that 44% of city voters believe that local elections are effectively decided in the Democratic Party primary, not the general election.
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To promote greater political competition and turnout, therefore, I respectfully recommend that the commission consider changes to the city's electoral structure, the details of which I will include in my extended written testimony.
0:46:58
Today, I'd like to focus on a few caveats of nonpartisan primaries and the benefits and trade offs of moving the city's local elections to even numbered years.
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MI polling shows that a 37% plurality of city voters supports nonpartisan primaries over open or closed alternatives.
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Now by nonpartisan primary, I mean an election open to all registered voters who select candidates to advance to the general election regardless of party.
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Nonpartisan does not, however, require removing party labels from the ballot.
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Eliminating party labels would be problematic as they serve as important information cues to help voters make their decisions at the ballot box.
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And some jurisdictions, like Alaska, for example, allow candidates to choose a preferred party that appears next to the candidate's name on the ballot.
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But this may mislead voters if party leadership does not support these candidates, which can also occur if the label simply reflects the candidate's voter registration at the time of an election.
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Instead, I suggest that party leaders select the candidates who will bear their party's endorsement, allowing parties to play a role, in a nonpartisan system while opening the vote to all registered voters and still boosting political competition.
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For city council elections, I also respectfully urge the commission to consider list based proportional representation systems, which can bypass the need for a primary election by likewise allowing internal party processes to nominate candidates.
0:48:40
Next, moving elections, for New York City local offices to even years would amplify the participatory impact of a reformed electoral structure.
0:48:51
Across The US and in New York City, odd year local elections draw far lower turnout than those held alongside federal contests in even years.
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This dampens political competition, contributes to less representative electorates, empowers special interests, and raises election administration costs.
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Ample evidence nationwide corroborates that moving local elections to even numbered years is the single most effective way to increase voter participation.
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Based
Ben Weinberg
0:49:21
on
John Ketchum
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the city's historical voter patterns, holding local elections on even years could potentially double or more the recent share of New Yorkers who participate in local government, particularly if those elections were held concurrently with presidential elections.
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Higher turnout yields important secondary benefits.
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It dilutes the influence of special interest groups by raising the cost of reaching a sufficient number of voters to sway an election.
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As a result, even your elections encourage local elected leaders to make decisions that better reflect the preferences and concerns of a majority of their constituents.
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And this closer representativeness does not come at the expense of one political party over the another.
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Studies have found that moving to even year elections has no discernible partisan impact.
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Voters are not also more ignorant of local matters simply because they participate in a local race that coincides with federal or state races.
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And finally, eliminating odd year elections could save between 30 and $60,000,000 every four years and reduce the size of the city's board of elections, prompting long overdue reforms at that body.
0:50:33
As you are all likely aware, there exists a major impediment to moving local elections to even years, and that is article 13, section eight of the New York state constitution, which would need to be amended before a new local election calendar takes effect.
0:50:49
But the multiyear nature of the state constitutional amendment process can allow city officials and voters to acclimate to this change and potentially align the new even year local calendar with the decennial census redistricting process.
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For example, allowing the first even year local races in 2032.
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I urge you to seize this opportunity to build a fairer and more representative local democracy.
0:51:15
Thank you again, and I welcome any questions.